You are here:

Current and Former Teen Board Members on Teenreads.com's 20th Anniversary

Teenreads.com 20th Anniversary

Current and Former Teen Board Members on Teenreads.com's 20th Anniversary

One of our favorite parts of Teenreads.com is our Teen Board: a group of real teenagers nationwide who read, review and report for us on a variety of topics. Our Teen Board members provide invaluable feedback to us about books, authors and trends; when we celebrate Teenreads, we celebrate them. As we kick off our 20th anniversary celebration, here are some words from current and former Teen Board members about how they found Teenreads, which books they discovered through their time on the Board and what Teenreads has meant to them.

"I found Teenreads through a friend who was already on the Teen Board and from the amazing words she said about the site, I knew that I wanted nothing more than to be on the next Board. Ever since I sent in my first review, the entire experience has been so wonderful and one that I will cherish forever. I’ve discovered so many great reads through the months but my favorite has to be HOW TO MAKE A WISH by Ashley Herring Blake since it was such a beautiful story that I found myself in love with. I’m honestly so thankful that Teenreads has let me be apart of their family and I know that in the next twenty --- even fifty --- years they will have that same welcoming effect on anyone that visits the site." ---Taylor F., Teen Board Member 2016 - 2017

"I discovered Teenreads on a whim a couple years back. I saw that submissions were open to be a part of the Teen Board and I knew that I had to try to be on it. I've been involved with Teenreads ever since! My favorite book I read for Teenreads was easily LADY MIDNIGHT by Cassandra Clare! Being part of the Teen Board is so much fun. While it's awesome to get a book or two to review each month, it's also super cool just to get a look at what all is coming out! Being a part of this awesome website has been an amazing experience, and I can't wait to see where Teenreads goes next!" --- Isabel C., Teen Board Member 2015 - 2017

"Finding Teenreads was actually sort of a mistake! I was in eighth grade and had just moved from the Bay Area to Miami, alone and horrendously bored, so I figured that I should find something to read. I looked up "teen book review" and landed right on Teenreads' home page! My first time visiting the site, Teenreads was looking for new members on its Teen Board. I read its description, found my recommender for the application (my mom, who had never written a recommendation in English before), and forgot that I even applied. Imagine my surprise when I found out that I got in! I was shocked, but also felt a little bit guilty; I was not a die-hard fan of the website, I just really loved reading. At first, my reviews were choppy and oddly written, my vocabulary was weak and descriptions lacking, but during my three years I've been a Board Member, my writing skills have dramatically improved and I've had incredible opportunities to interact with the publishing world in my own community.

Picking a favorite book I've discovered through Teenreads is so hard for me to do --- not only because I love so many books, but because I have vastly different reasons for loving each of them --- but since I have to pick, it has to be Nicola Yoon's EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING. I loved the book for its freshness, how it didn't feel the need to focus on reality too much and wandered into a beautiful augmented version of it and how lighthearted it made me feel. It has a true sense of pure happiness engrained in its core, something so rare, so precious in YA novels. What really augmented everything was meeting Nicola Yoon at the Miami Book Fair and finding out that she was an electrical engineer before being an author, which truly alleviated a lot of the stress that I was under at the tim. I really thought that I was strange for being a STEM kid who also loved humanities. I realized that engineering and the arts could coincide, that I could still make robots and write on the side. Opening up EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING brings all those feelings back for me, so it holds a special place in my heart.

Teenreads unexpectedly changed my life and I am beyond grateful for all the amazing opportunities that Teenreads has enabled me to obtain. Here's to 20 more years of life-changers, community creators, and book readers!" --- Rachel D., Teen Board Member 2014 - 2017

I found out about Teenreads through my sister, who was also a member before me. It was a really exciting experience to read new books each month because I got to discover many hidden gems in books as well as the other highly anticipated novels before they came out. My favorite book so far to read and review was GENERATION ONE by Pittacus Lore, a spin-off of the original series, Lorien Legacies. Thanks for the opportunity to read new books and enter new universes within the lines! --- Jeremy H., Teen Board Member, Teen Board Member 2016 - 2017

It was not actually me who discovered Teenreads, but my neighbor. It was back in the end of 2014 or beginning of 2015 in the early days of my Booktube channel. My neighbor found out about how I liked reviewing books and found Teenreads for me, sending the link to me saying I should be part of the Teen Board! I signed up for the newsletter and registered to be apart of the Teen Board as soon as they were taking applications. Now I’ve been on the Teen Board for nearly three years! It’s been so fun to be apart of the Teen Board for the past few years. No matter how many times I get a package with a book before release date, I always feel so official and excited. I’ve gotten so many fun opportunities from being on the board, even ones like meeting up with Rebecca and touring the old Teenreads office! Teenreads has opened up my eyes to so many more new releases that I would have missed and sparked a passion I have for reviewing books. I hope the best for Teenreads for the NEXT twenty years and for even more books to be read! The growth of the website I’ve seen in my two years has been huge so I can only begin to imagine where the next twenty years will take us. --- Brynn S., Teen Board Member 2015 - 2017

I found Teenreads when I was searching for teen book recommendations years ago. When I was not quite a teen yet, I wanted to be on the Teen Board, but was super intimidated by the thought. When I was 14, I finally saw the application for the Teen Board and decided to give it a try. I was thrilled when I was accepted two years ago and never looked back. Teenreads has given me what I have always wanted: to actually be a book reviewer. It is even better because all I have to do is read what I love and it is very manageable. My favorite read so far with Teenreads has been MY LADY JANE. I am so happy that I got the opportunity to review it. Teenreads is an extraordinary bookish community that has been a home for me and will surely continue to be a community for teen readers for the next 20 years and beyond! --- Grace P., Teen Board Member 2015 - 2017

I discovered Teenreads right before starting my freshman year of high school, and I'm about to enter my senior year! My mom frequents the Bookreporter site, which is affiliated with Teenreads, and noticed the link to the Teenreads site at the bottom of the page. Knowing that I love to read, she told me about it, I applied, and I've been a member of the Teen Board (and loving it!) ever since. My favorite book I've read and reviewed for Teenreads is, without a doubt, TATTOO ATLAS by Tim Floreen, which also happens to be my favorite book of all time. It's always such a pleasure working with the wonderful people at Teenreads and I've discovered so many of my favorite books through them. I'm looking forward to all the new reads they have in store for me! --- Maggie L., Teen Board Member 2014 - 2017

The Scene: Last day of middle school. I'm bawling my eyes out because I'm going to be leaving my favorite teachers, my favorite librarian and my favorite counselor. I did not have many (or any) friends during middle school so I became friends with my teachers, librarians and counselors. I had really and truly bonded with my librarian during my 3 years at the school. She used to be the sponsor for the school book club and was always willing to talk to me about what I was reading at the time (because she had literally read every single book I could ever come up with). As I'm in the library on the last day, she comes up to me and hands me a flyer, saying "You should apply for this! I think you would really like it!" And it was a flyer to apply for the Teen Board! It's crazy thinking about that moment because it doesn't seem that look ago but it was! I remember frantically emailing her over the summer when I realized the second round of applications required a recommendation letter. She graciously wrote me an amazing one in less than a day. But with her help, I was able to stumble upon this amazing site and community. Throughout these 4 years, I've improved my writing skills, learned to read books in a whole new way (which really helped me in my English classes during junior and senior year!!), and developed a new appreciation for all that goes into writing and publishing a book. Teenreads has given me opportunities to do things I never thought were possible (like attending a book launch event!) and I could not be more grateful. I only wish the best for Teenreads and here's to another amazing 20 years full of growth!! --- Pranshu A.

Books On Screen

November's Books on Screen roundup includes the feature filmsThe Nutcracker and the Four Realms, The Grinch and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald; the debut of the Hallmark made-for-TV holiday movie, "Pride and Prejudice and Mistletoe"; the ongoing series "Black Lightning," "The Flash," and "Arrow," all on The CW; and the DVD releases of Crazy Rich Asians, and The Little Mermaid.

Adult Books You Want to Read

Throughout the year, Teenreads.com features adult books from Bookreporter.com, our site for adult readers, that we think will have definite appeal to a teen audience. In the spirit of sharing, we are now spotlighting a selection of titles each month from Bookreporter.com that we believe are great reads that you might enjoy.Explore our picks here!